Welcome to Medical News Today

Healthline Media, Inc. would like to process and share personal data (e.g., mobile ad id) and data about your use of our site (e.g., content interests) with our third party partners (see a current list) using cookies and similar automatic collection tools in order to a) personalize content and/or offers on our site or other sites, b) communicate with you upon request, and/or c) for additional reasons upon notice and, when applicable, with your consent.

Healthline Media, Inc. is based in and operates this site from the United States. Any data you provide will be primarily stored and processed in the United States, pursuant to the laws of the United States, which may provide lesser privacy protections than European Economic Area countries.

By clicking “accept” below, you acknowledge and grant your consent for these activities unless and until you withdraw your consent using our rights request form. Learn more in our Privacy Policy.

Please accept our privacy terms

We use cookies and similar technologies to improve your browsing experience, personalize content and offers, show targeted ads, analyze traffic, and better understand you. We may share your information with third-party partners for marketing purposes. To learn more and make choices about data use, visit our Advertising Policy and Privacy Policy. By clicking “Accept and Continue” below, (1) you consent to these activities unless and until you withdraw your consent using our rights request form, and (2) you consent to allow your data to be transferred, processed, and stored in the United States.

Get the MNT newsletter

Email an article

You have chosen to share the following article:

How elderberries can help you fight the flu

To proceed, simply complete the form below, and a link to the article will be sent by email on your behalf.Note: Please don't include any URLs in your comments, as they will be removed upon submission.

We do not store details you enter into this form. Please see our privacy policy for more information.

Some foods can maintain the feeling of fullness for longer than others. These foods often have certain characteristics that offset hunger. Many contain a lot of protein, such as eggs, lean meat or fish, nuts, and low-fat dairy.

People sometimes refer to the feeling of fullness as satiety. In 1995, researchers at the University of Sydney put together a satiety index to measure how effectively various foods achieve satiety. In their experiment, participants ate different foods and gave a rating of how full they were after 2 hours.

Eating foods that satisfy hunger can help control calorie consumption. For example, eating a meal that contains filling foods is likely to reduce portion size and snacking between meals. This can aid weight management by cutting the overall calories a person consumes in a day.

Many unhealthful foods are not satiating. Highly processed foods or those high in sugar often have lower satiety scores. Avoiding these foods in favor of those with high satiety scores will have health benefits and offset hunger better.

In this article, we list seven foods with high satiety scores that may help to keep people full for longer than others. Including these foods in the diet can be a useful way to control calorie intake and improve overall health:

Boiled or baked potato

Potatoes are a dense food that are rich in healthful nutrients.

In the original satiety index study, boiled or baked potatoes had the highest score of 323. Fried potatoes had a relatively low score of 116.

Potatoes are highly dense foods and rich in starch, vitamin C, and several other healthful nutrients.

Low-fat dairy products

Increasing consumption of low-fat dairy products could promote satiety and reduce food intake in the short term.

For example, one study in the journal Appetite found that high-protein Greek yogurts were effective at offsetting hunger, increasing satiety, and reducing further consumption.

Eggs

Eggs are excellent sources of protein, vitamins, and minerals. They also have a beneficial effect on reducing hunger and extending satiety.

A study from 2011 in the International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition gave participants a lunch of omelet, jacket potato, or a chicken sandwich. Those who consumed the omelet had greater satiety than those eating the carbohydrate meal 4 hours later, leading to the conclusion that an omelet meal at lunchtime may reduce calorie consumption between meals.

Nuts

Nuts are effective at increasing satiety.

Nuts are high in protein and unsaturated fats, which are healthful fats.

These unsaturated fats have a range of benefits and are different from the saturated fats found in many unhealthful foods.

Nuts may be a high-calorie food, but they are nutritionally rich and effective at increasing satiety.

Eating nuts as a snack may help to satiate hunger between meals, without leading to weight gain.

Lean meat and fish

Both meat and fish are high in protein and low in saturated fat. Diets that contain high levels of protein can effectively control appetite and promote weight loss. This includes vegetarian proteins, for example, soy, according to another study in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Summary

Filling foods typically have a range of health benefits and can support weight management.

Most foods that are high in fiber or protein are typically good for promoting satiety. Other characteristics of specific foods can also make them filling, such as having a high water density.

Foods that are highly processed or high in sugars often only satisfy hunger for a relatively short time. These foods are usually low in nutritional content and have few health benefits.

2019 Healthline Media UK Ltd. All rights reserved. MNT is the registered trade mark of Healthline Media. Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a healthcare professional.